JP4541727B2 - Software function update device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a software function updating apparatus that changes a software function by replacing software and enables a single device to be applied to various systems, and in particular, a function updating method based on CORBA, which is an international standard in distributed object technology. Related to the software function update device by

  Various approaches have been made so far for software replacement (function update) in wireless devices. Generally, the downloaded software is downloaded to a work memory on a terminal or a software area on a flash ROM (Read Only Memory). And, after downloading, if there is no problem in the operation of the software in that area, switching between the current software area and the new software area and replacing the entire software is often used. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).

  In the method based on CORBA, which is an international standard in the distributed object technology, object units are replaced. When the object to be updated is downloaded, the object under operation refers to a table that manages version information held by the system to determine whether or not new object information is stored. I can judge. When new object information is stored, it can be understood that the object in operation is an object to be updated.

  Therefore, the object in operation rejects all requests from adjacent objects and stops processing. A method has been proposed in which a subsequent request from an adjacent object is handled by a new object, so that the adjacent object replaces the object during operation without being aware of the update of the other party (for example, Patent Document 2).

JP2003-122574 (1st page, 1 figure) JP 2002-366281 (1st page, 1 figure)

  However, the prior art has the following problems. In the method of replacing the entire software according to Patent Document 1, the software is replaced for each software area such as a work memory or a flash ROM on the terminal, so that processing related to connection of objects or the like is unnecessary. However, on the other hand, since the objects in the package are replaced at once, a download overhead occurs.

  In addition, since it is not possible to construct a configuration that crosses the work memory or flash ROM area, there is a problem in that only the function can be updated as a fixed configuration. Further, since the work memory or flash ROM area is managed by software, it is necessary to manage the area such as the address and size of the work memory or flash ROM, resulting in complicated management.

  Further, in the method of updating the function by grasping that the object itself according to Patent Document 2 is the object to be updated, the problem when the entire software is replaced at once is solved. However, when each object is an update target, the process is stopped and the process is taken over to the new object. Therefore, the object cannot be managed centrally and cannot be handled when the connection has an order relationship. was there.

  The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and obtains a software function update apparatus that performs a function update method that can perform an object-by-object update and can centrally manage objects to be updated. With the goal.

Software functions updating apparatus according to the present invention manages the software functions as a collection of objects, Rutotomoni interchanged object to be updated included in the set of objects from the old object to the new object, associated with the update target object a software function updating device thus realizing the various software functions that switches the interconnection between objects, a database for storing configuration information having a data interconnection between objects, the software to be managed A storage unit for storing package data including a configuration management profile having data on interconnection relationships between functional objects, and an object group which is a set of managed objects, and replacement of objects and between objects For new software functions that require switching of interconnections, set new package data that includes a configuration management profile that contains data on the interconnection relationship between objects and a new group of objects that are required for the new software functions. An input unit to be downloaded and stored in the storage unit, and a configuration management profile included in the new package data is read from the storage unit at the download timing, registered as configuration information in the database, and stored in the new package data Upon completion of initialization after starting a new object included in the object group, a notification of IOR, which is the reference destination information of the own object, was received from the new object and already registered in the database As part of configuration information After renewed additionally registered OR of information in association with new objects, and configuration management unit for notifying the first connection request as a request to establish a connection between objects in response to a first connection request, and the new object After disconnecting the interconnection between the objects related to the old object to be replaced , the connection source object in the connection relation is detected based on the configuration information including the IOR information registered in the database, and each connection source to be managed When a connection management unit that outputs a second connection request for establishing a connection with the connection destination object for the object and a connection instruction for the connection destination object from the connection source object in response to the second connection request are received, Detect connection destination objects in connection relation based on configuration information including information The connection source object and the connection destination object so that the interconnection between the objects specified by the new package data is established, and the replacement of the objects according to the new package data and the switching of the interconnections between the objects are completed. And an object configuration data management unit that performs connection control between them.

  According to the present invention, by defining the connection relationship between objects by the configuration management profile, it is possible to establish a connection between objects, perform update in units of objects, and manage functions to be updated centrally It is possible to obtain a software function updating apparatus that realizes the method.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following embodiments, the software function update device is described as a wireless device.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
FIG. 1 is a functional configuration diagram for realizing functional update of a wireless device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The wireless device 100 has a function changed by software replacement, and corresponds to a terminal station, a mobile station, or a base station.

  The wireless device 100 includes an object management unit 110, middleware 120, a package unit 130, and an OS 140. Also, the wireless device 100 can download newly created software from the input unit 150 by connecting to the input unit 150.

  Here, the object management unit 110 manages an object group corresponding to the software function to be operated, and includes a configuration management unit 111, a connection management unit 112, a schedule management unit 113, and a difference analysis unit 114.

  The middleware 120 supports communication between objects in the package, and includes an object configuration data management unit 121 having a repository 122 corresponding to a database.

  The package unit 130 is a software package downloaded from the input unit 150, and includes a configuration management profile 131, a management object group 132, and interface definition information 133. Such a package is stored in the storage unit by being downloaded from the input unit.

  Furthermore, the OS 140 is an OS (Operating System) serving as a software base in the wireless device 100.

Next, individual functions in the object management unit 110 will be described.
The configuration management unit 111 reads the configuration management profile 131 in the package 130 and registers it as configuration information in the repository 122 in the middleware 120. In order to establish a connection between objects based on configuration information registered in the repository 122, the connection management unit 112 issues a connection request to the connection source object and manages the connection between the objects.

  When an order relationship is instructed for connection of objects in response to an instruction from the input unit 150, the schedule management unit 113 instructs the configuration management unit 111 to establish connection of objects based on the instructed connection order. It is a management unit that notifies the connection order.

  Further, the difference analysis unit 114 is an analysis unit that compares the configuration information corresponding to the software function in operation with the configuration information corresponding to the new software function and analyzes the difference when updating the object. An embodiment using the difference analysis unit 114 will be described in detail in a second embodiment.

  Next, each function in the middleware 120 will be described. The repository 122 is a repository for specific configuration information that exists in a distributed manner, and configuration information in the configuration management profile 131 is stored in the repository 122 by the configuration management unit 111. The object configuration data management unit 121 controls connection establishment between objects based on configuration information stored in the repository 122.

  Next, individual functions in the package 130 will be described. Here, the package is a set of related functions such as a file necessary for realizing a function such as an application. The package is downloaded from the input unit 150 and stored in the storage unit of the wireless device 100.

  The configuration management profile 131 is configuration management profile data in which connection relationships between software function objects are converted into data. The management target object group 132 is a set of objects included in the package 130.

  The interface definition information 133 is data as an IDL (Interface Definition Language) file in which information of an interface provided by each object is described. The IDL file is described in a CORBA standard description format. This IDL file is the name of the interface, data exchanged between each object by the interface, and the like, specifically a function, its argument, and the like. An embodiment using the interface definition information 133 will be described in detail in a third embodiment.

  A specific operation for performing function update by software replacement in the wireless device 100 having the above-described function will be described below. An operation at the time of initial activation when a new package 130 composed of a plurality of objects is downloaded from the input unit 150 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an object configuration in the first embodiment of the present invention. The package 130 in FIG. 2 includes two objects, an object a and an object b. Here, the case where the object a and the object b are mutually related is shown. In FIG. 2, (1) and (2) indicate the connection order, and details will be described later.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a data table structure of a newly downloaded configuration management profile according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The configuration management profile 131 is composed of five pieces of data: Side, object name, connection destination object name, connection type, and connection order.

  Side is the number of the package to be managed, and “1” is set here. As the object name, two data of object a and object b are set corresponding to FIG. Corresponding object names in the same package are set as connection destination object names corresponding to FIG. As the connection type, “internal” data is set because the connection destination object is in the same package. Further, the connection order is that the connection source object a is connected to the connection destination object b and then the connection source object b is connected to the connection destination object a, and the order is “1” and “2”, respectively. Is set as

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a data table structure in the repository 122 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In addition to the five data shown in FIG. 3, two data relating to IOR and connection ID are added. IOR (abbreviation of Interoperable Object Reference) is data indicating the reference destination information of the own object, and corresponds to the connection destination address of the object itself. The connection ID is data written when a connection between objects is established.

  Furthermore, FIG. 5 is an operation sequence diagram at the time of initial startup according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The operation will be described according to the steps shown in FIG. Here, a case where a new package 130 is downloaded and its software function is activated is shown, but the activation timing of the software can also be performed independently of the download timing.

  When a new package 130 is downloaded from the input unit 150, the configuration management unit 111 in the object management unit 110 reads the data of the configuration management profile 131 in the package 130 (S100). Next, the configuration management unit 111 registers the read data as configuration information in the repository 122 of the object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 (S101). As a result, the information defined in the configuration management profile 131 of FIG. 3 is reflected in the repository 122 except for the IOR and connection ID of FIG.

  Next, the new object that has started activation and has been initialized notifies the configuration management unit 111 of the IOR that is the reference destination information of the own object (S102). Specifically, the IOR notification is made from each of the object a and the object b.

  Upon receiving the notification, the configuration management unit 111 registers the notified IOR in the repository 122 (S103). The IOR in FIG. 4 corresponds to this data. By registering the IOR, the connection destination address of each object can be specified by this data.

  Next, the configuration management unit 111 receives the IOR notification from all the objects of the package 130, determines that the preparation for establishing the connection between the objects is completed, and requests the connection management unit 112 to establish the connection. As a connection request (S104).

  Upon receiving the notification, the connection management unit 112 reads the configuration information from the repository 122 and searches for the IOR of the target object (S105). The connection management unit 112 controls the object using the configuration information and the IOR. Then, in order to establish a connection between objects, the connection management unit 112 makes a connection request for establishing a connection to each connection source object to be managed (S106).

  Next, each connection source object that receives the connection request issues a connection instruction to the connection destination object. In the example of FIG. 5, the object name of the other party is specified by the bind interface (S107), but the interface is an example, and this name is not necessarily required.

  The object configuration data management unit in the middleware 120 that manages communication between objects searches the IOR of the corresponding object from the repository 122 based on the object name in the bind interface (S108), and sends the destination information from the object name to the IOR. In other words, the request is transmitted to the connection destination object (S109).

  Next, each connection destination object that has received the request for the connection instruction performs a connection process (S110), and returns a response to the connection source object after the process is completed (S111). This response is made via the object configuration data management unit 121 in the same manner as the connection request for establishing the connection described above.

  Next, the object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 notifies the connection management unit 112 that a connection between the objects has been established (S112). In response to the notification of connection establishment, the connection management unit 112 attaches an ID to the connection and registers it in the repository 122 (S113), and performs subsequent management. This ID corresponds to the connection ID in FIG. 4 and is written when the connection between objects is established.

  With the IOR registration in step S103 and the connection ID registration in step S113, all table information in the repository 122 shown in FIG. 4 is stored. After registering the connection ID, a connection between the objects is established and communication is possible (S114).

  According to the first embodiment, by utilizing configuration information based on the configuration management profile, a connection between objects is automatically established without a user instruction, and an object group included in a new package is executed. A software function update device can be realized.

  Furthermore, since the configuration can be freely defined by the configuration management profile, it is possible to easily construct an object connection relationship based on an arbitrary configuration as well as a fixed configuration. Furthermore, since it is not necessary to manage address information that is an area such as a work memory or a flash ROM, management can be facilitated.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
In the first embodiment, the operation at the initial activation when the new package 130 is downloaded from the input unit 150 has been described. In the second embodiment, a partial update operation when an object is updated (replaced) will be described. The configuration of the second embodiment is the same as the configuration of FIG. 1 in the first embodiment. The first embodiment will be described in detail below with a focus on the difference analysis unit 114 that has not been specifically described.

  The case where the object b is updated to the object b ′ with respect to the software function operated by the three objects a, b, and c will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an object configuration in the second embodiment of the present invention. There are three objects currently in operation: a, b, and c. The newly downloaded object is b ', and the case where the object b is updated by the object b' is shown.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a data table structure of a newly downloaded configuration management profile according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The data structure composed of five types of data is the same as that in FIG. 3 in the first embodiment. A connection destination object name set to “null” means that there is no connection to be a connection destination.

  For example, the object a means that there is no arrow from the object a to another object as shown in FIG. 6 and there is no connection as a connection destination, and the connection destination object name is “null”. Is set.

  Also, what is set to “External” in the connection type means a connection relationship with an externally positioned object such as a hardware driver, although it is the same management target. Object a corresponds to this external object.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a data table structure of an object configuration in operation in the repository 122 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a data table structure of a new object configuration in the repository 122 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The data structure composed of the seven types of data in FIGS. 8 and 9 is the same as that in FIG. 4 in the first embodiment.

  Furthermore, FIG. 10 is an operation sequence diagram at the time of partial update in the second embodiment of the present invention. The operation will be described according to the steps shown in FIG.

  When a new object or configuration management profile 131 is downloaded from the input unit 150, the configuration management unit 111 in the object management unit 110 reads the data of the configuration management profile 131 in the package 130 (S200). Next, the configuration management unit 111 registers the read data in the repository 122 of the object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 (S201). As a result, the information defined in the configuration management profile 131 of FIG. 7 is reflected in the repository 122 except for the IOR and connection ID of FIG.

  Next, activation is started and the new object that has been initialized notifies the configuration management unit 111 of the object reference (IOR) that is the reference destination information of the self object (S202). At this time, since the objects other than the new object have already been notified, the notification is not performed again. Specifically, only the IOR notification of the object b ′ corresponding to the new object to be updated is made.

  Upon receiving the notification, the configuration management unit 111 registers the notified IOR in the repository 122 (S203). The IOR in FIG. 9 corresponds to this data.

  Next, the configuration management unit 111 notifies the difference analysis unit 114 of an analysis request for analyzing the difference between the configuration information corresponding to the software function in operation and the configuration information corresponding to the new software function. (S204). The difference analysis unit 114 compares the newly registered configuration information (corresponding to FIG. 9) in the repository 122 with the operating configuration information (corresponding to FIG. 8), and analyzes the changed portion (S205).

  Here, it is assumed that a predetermined identification name is assigned to the object name column in the configuration information so that it can be seen that the version of the object has been updated. As a result, the difference analysis unit 114 compares the configuration information in FIGS. 8 and 9 to determine that the object b has been changed to the object b ′.

  Further, by analyzing the direction attribute, the difference analysis unit 114 knows that there is no object b 'in the connection destination object name, so that there is no object connected to the object b'. Therefore, it is understood that the difference analysis unit 114 only needs to change the object b as the influence range of the object to be updated and establish a connection from the object b ′.

  When the difference analysis as described above is completed, the difference analysis unit 114 notifies the connection management unit 112 of an object update request for notifying the influence range of the object to be updated (S206). The connection management unit 112 starts a connection establishment process based on the new configuration information. The connection management unit 112 searches for an IOR of an object within the influence range of the object to be updated (S207), and notifies a disconnection request for temporarily disconnecting the connection to the currently operating object (S208).

  The connection management unit 112 deletes the connection ID corresponding to the disconnection request (S209), and newly requests a connection (S211). In response to the connection request here, the connection management unit 112 can determine that there are two objects a and c as connection destinations of the object b ′ by referring to the connection destination object name of FIG. . In this case, the connection management unit 112 gives priority to connection between objects inside the package, and first requests the connection source object b 'to connect to the connection destination object c.

  On the other hand, the object b that received the disconnection request in step S208 disconnects the connection and stops the communication process (S210).

  Further, the connection source object b 'that received the connection request in step S211 issues a connection instruction to the connection destination object c. In the example of FIG. 10, the object name of the other party is specified by the bind interface (S212), but the interface is an example, and this name is not necessarily required.

  The object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 that manages communication between objects retrieves the IOR of the corresponding object from the repository 122 based on the object name in the bind interface (S213), and sends destination information from the object name to the IOR. The request is transmitted to the connection destination object c (S214).

  Next, the connection destination object c that has received the request for the connection instruction performs a connection process (S215), and returns a response to the connection source object b 'after the process is completed (S216). This response is made via the object configuration data management unit 121 in the same manner as the connection request for establishing the connection described above.

  Next, the object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 notifies the connection management unit 112 that a connection between objects has been established (S217). By this connection establishment notification, the connection management unit 112 attaches an ID to the connection and registers it in the repository 122 (S218), and performs subsequent management. This ID corresponds to the connection ID in FIG.

  With the IOR registration in step S203 and the connection ID registration in step S218, table information corresponding to the relationship between the object b 'and the object c in the repository 122 shown in FIG. 9 is stored. After registering the connection ID, an internal connection between the objects b'-c is established and communication is possible (S219).

  The connection management unit 112 establishes an external connection when there is a connection relationship with an external object after the connection between objects in the package is completed. Normally, the external connection is established after the internal connection. However, in the connection order of the repositories 122, when the outside is designated preferentially, the connection order of the repositories 122 is followed.

  When it is necessary to construct an external connection, the configuration management unit 111 notifies the connection management unit 112 of a connection request as a connection establishment request (S220). Upon receiving the notification, the connection management unit 112 reads the configuration information from the repository 122 and searches for the IOR of the target object (S221). The connection management unit 112 controls the object using the configuration information and the IOR.

  Next, the connection management unit 112 issues a connection request to the connection destination object a to the connection source object b 'in order to establish a connection with the external object a (S222).

  Next, the connection source object b 'that receives the connection request issues a connection instruction to the connection destination external object a. In the example of FIG. 10, the object name of the other party is specified by the bind interface (S223), but the interface is an example, and this name is not necessarily required.

  The object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 that manages communication between objects searches the IOR of the corresponding object from the repository 122 based on the object name in the bind interface (S224), and sends destination information from the object name to the IOR. Is sent and the request is transmitted (S225).

  Next, the external object a that is the connection destination that has received the request for the connection instruction performs the connection process (S226), and returns a response to the connection source object b 'after the process is completed (S227). This response is made via the object configuration data management unit 121 in the same manner as the connection request for establishing the connection described above.

  Next, the object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 notifies the connection management unit 112 that the connection between the objects has been established (S228). By this connection establishment notification, the connection management unit 112 attaches an ID to the connection and registers it in the repository 122 (S229), and performs subsequent management. This ID corresponds to the connection ID in FIG.

  With the IOR registration in step S203 and the connection ID registration in step S229, table information corresponding to the relationship between the object b 'and the external object a in the repository 122 shown in FIG. 9 is stored. After registering the connection ID, all external and internal connections between objects are established and communication is possible (S230).

  According to the second embodiment, the operation of the difference analysis unit compares the configuration information in operation with the new configuration information, and analyzes the difference to identify the object to be updated and the object related to the object. Thus, only the objects within the influence range can be partially replaced. As a result, it is not necessary to download all objects from the input unit, and only the configuration management profile corresponding to the object necessary for the update and the new software function needs to be downloaded. Overhead can be shortened.

  Furthermore, since the configuration can be freely defined in the configuration management profile, it is possible to replace objects not only with a fixed configuration but also with an arbitrary configuration.

Embodiment 3 FIG.
In the second embodiment, the difference analysis unit 114 identifies the object to be updated and the object related to the object by analyzing the difference based on the comparison between the configuration information in operation and the new configuration information. The case where only the object within the influence range is partially updated has been described. On the other hand, the third embodiment uses the interface definition information 133 to perform partial update. The configuration of the third embodiment is the same as the configuration of FIG. 1 in the first embodiment. The details will be described below with a focus on the interface definition information 133 that has not been specifically described in the first embodiment.

  In the third embodiment, it is assumed that the interface definition information 133 provided by the object is provided as an IDL file in the package 130. Similar to the configuration management profile, the IDL file is stored in the storage unit and written in the repository 122 as part of the configuration information, and can be managed as configuration information.

  In this case, the difference analysis unit 114 can analyze the difference between the configuration information in operation and the new configuration information based on the IDL file as well as the connection relationship of the objects registered in the repository 122. By this analysis, even if the object is determined to be the same based on the object name or connection information, if the IDL is different, the object to be updated and the object related to the object are specified, and the object within the influence range Can only be partially updated.

  The partial update operation using such interface definition information 133 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an object configuration in the third embodiment of the present invention. There are three objects currently in operation: a, b, and c. Two newly downloaded objects are b 'and c'.

  Here, it is assumed that the object c ′ can be identified from the object name as updating the object c. Further, it is assumed that the object b ′ is an object that is updated when the interface provided by the object c ′ is changed from the interface provided by the object c, and cannot be identified only by comparing the object names. In such a case, it is determined that the object b should be updated to the object b ′ by further comparing the IDL files.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a data table structure of a newly downloaded configuration management profile according to the third embodiment of the present invention. The data structure composed of five types of data and the contents thereof are the same as those in FIG. 3 in the first embodiment and FIG. 7 in the second embodiment.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a data table structure of objects in operation in the repository 122 according to the third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 14 is a diagram showing a data table structure of a new object in the repository 122 according to the third embodiment of the present invention. The data configuration composed of the seven types of data in FIGS. 13 and 14 is the same as that in FIGS. 4 and 8 in the first embodiment and FIGS. 8 and 9 in the second embodiment.

  Further, FIG. 15 is an operation sequence diagram at the time of partial update in the third embodiment of the present invention. The operation will be described according to the steps shown in FIG.

  As in the first and second embodiments, when a new object, configuration management file 131, and interface definition information 133 are downloaded from the input unit 150, the configuration management unit 111 in the object management unit 110 displays the configuration in the package 130. Data of the management profile 131 is read (S300). Next, the configuration management unit 111 registers the read data in the repository 122 of the object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 (S301). As a result, the information defined in the configuration management profile 131 in FIG. 12 is reflected in the repository 122 except for the IOR and the connection ID in FIG.

  Next, activation is started, and the new object that has been initialized notifies the configuration management unit 111 of the object reference (IOR) that is the reference destination information of the self object (S302). At this time, since the objects other than the new object have already been notified, the notification is not performed again. Specifically, the IOR notification of the object b ′ and the object c ′ is made.

  Upon receiving the notification, the configuration management unit 111 registers the notified IOR in the repository 122 (S303). The IOR in FIG. 14 corresponds to this data.

  Next, the configuration management unit 111 notifies the difference analysis unit 114 of an analysis request for analyzing the difference between the configuration information corresponding to the software function in operation and the configuration information corresponding to the new software function. (S304). Then, the difference analysis unit 114 compares the configuration information (corresponding to FIG. 14) of the newly registered repository 122 with the operating configuration information (corresponding to FIG. 13), and analyzes the changed portion (S305). By this analysis, the difference analysis unit 114 can determine that the object c ′ is an update of the object c.

  Further, the difference analysis unit 114 also investigates the interface definition information (IDL) 133 and analyzes the changed portion of the interface information provided by each object. If a change location is not found in the IDL, the difference analysis unit 114 performs a difference analysis from the data excluding the IDL and specifies the influence range of the object to be updated. The difference analysis from the data excluding IDL is the same processing as in the second embodiment.

  On the other hand, when a change location is found in the IDL, that is, when the number of functions, arguments, etc. are changed as an interface, the difference analysis unit 114 changes the object using the interface to the interface definition information 133 and the configuration management profile Analysis is performed from 131 or the repository 122.

  As a result of the IDL analysis, the difference analysis unit 114 can determine that the interface provided by the object c ′ has been changed from the interface provided by the object c. Further, the difference analysis unit 114 can recognize from the repository 122 (FIG. 13) in operation of the object configuration data management unit 121 and the IDL that the object b is an object having a connection relationship with the object c before update (S306). .

  Therefore, the difference analysis unit 114 updates the object b to the object b ′ by the interface change accompanying the update from the object c to the object c ′ through the analysis of the configuration information and the IDL analysis (corresponding to S305 and S306). I know you need to do that. It can also be seen that object a does not need to be updated because it has no connection relationship with object c. Therefore, in the subsequent steps, an operation of updating the objects b and c to the objects b ′ and c ′ is performed.

  When the difference analysis is completed, the difference analysis unit 114 notifies the connection management unit 112 of an object update request for notifying the influence range of the object to be updated (S307). The connection management unit 112 starts a connection establishment process based on the new configuration information. The connection management unit 112 searches for an IOR of an object in the influence range of the object to be updated (S308), and notifies a disconnection request for temporarily disconnecting the connection to the currently operating object (S309).

  The connection management unit 112 deletes the connection ID corresponding to the disconnection request (S310), and newly requests a connection (S312). As the connection request here, the connection management unit 112 makes a connection request between the objects to the objects b ′ and c ′ to be changed.

  On the other hand, the object b that has received the disconnection request in step S309 disconnects the connection and stops the communication process (S311).

  In addition, the connection source object b 'and the object c' that received the connection request in step S312 give a connection instruction to the connection destination object. In the example of FIG. 15, the object name of the other party is specified by the bind interface (S 313), but the interface is an example, and this name is not necessarily required.

  The object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 that controls communication between objects retrieves the IOR of the corresponding object from the repository 122 based on the object name in the bind interface (S314), and sends destination information from the object name to the IOR. And transmits a request to the connection destination objects c ′ and b ′ (S315).

  Next, the connection destination objects c ′ and b ′ that have received the connection instruction request execute the connection processing (S316), and respond to the connection source objects b ′ and c ′ after the processing is completed. Is returned (S317). This response is made via the object configuration data management unit 121 in the same manner as the connection request for establishing the connection described above.

  Next, the object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 notifies the connection management unit 112 that a connection between objects has been established (S318). By this connection establishment notification, the connection management unit 112 attaches an ID to the connection and registers it in the repository 122 (S319), and performs subsequent management. This ID corresponds to the connection ID in FIG.

  By the IOR registration in step S303 and the connection ID registration in step S319, table information corresponding to the relationship between the object b 'and the object c' in the repository 122 shown in FIG. 14 is stored. After registering the connection ID, an internal connection between the objects b'-c 'is established and communication is possible (S320).

  The connection management unit 112 establishes an external connection when there is a connection relationship with an external object after the connection between objects in the package is completed. Normally, the external connection is established after the internal connection. However, in the connection order of the repositories 122, when the outside is designated preferentially, the connection order of the repositories 122 is followed.

  When it is necessary to construct an external connection, the configuration management unit 111 notifies the connection management unit 112 of a connection request as a connection establishment request (S321). Upon receiving the notification, the connection management unit 112 reads the configuration information from the repository 122 and searches for the IOR of the target object (S322). The connection management unit 112 controls the object using the configuration information and the IOR.

  Next, in order to establish a connection between objects, the connection management unit 112 issues a connection request for establishing a connection to the managed object (S323). In this case, since the external object a is an existing object, the connection management unit 112 makes a reconnection request to the external object a. As a result, the external object “a” that has received the reconnection request may perform connection processing only for the previously disconnected object “b”.

  Next, the external object a that receives the connection request issues a connection instruction to the connection destination object b. In the example of FIG. 15, the object name of the other party is specified by the bind interface (S 324), but the interface is an example, and this name is not necessarily required.

  The object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 that manages communication between objects retrieves the IOR of the corresponding object from the repository 122 based on the object name in the bind interface (S325), and sends destination information from the object name to the IOR. Is sent and the request is transmitted (S326).

  Here, the external object a uses the same object (object b) as the previous connection as an argument. Since the object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 can identify that the object name has been changed from the object b to the object b ′, the IOR corresponding to the object b ′ is searched for the IOR of the object b ′. The replacement is done.

  That is, in this process, the existing object (in this case, the external object a) does not need to know the name of the new object (in this case, the object b ′) by the function of the object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120. It becomes possible to automatically switch to the new object without being aware of the new object by the same means as when the connection was previously established.

  Next, the connection destination object b 'that has received the request for the connection instruction performs a connection process (S327), and returns a response to the connection source external object a after the process is completed (S328). This response is made via the object configuration data management unit 121 in the same manner as the connection request for establishing the connection described above.

  Next, the object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 notifies the connection management unit 112 that the connection between the objects a and b ′ has been established (S329). By this connection establishment notification, the connection management unit 112 attaches an ID to the connection and registers it in the repository 122 (S330), and performs subsequent management. This ID corresponds to the connection ID in FIG.

  By the IOR registration in step S303 and the connection ID registration in step S330, table information corresponding to the relationship between the object b 'and the external object a in the repository 122 shown in FIG. 14 is stored. After registering the connection ID, all external and internal connections between objects are established and communication is possible (S331).

  According to the third embodiment, in addition to the comparison of object configurations performed in the second embodiment, the difference can be further analyzed based on the comparison of IDL files. Thereby, even by updating the IDL, it is possible to specify the object to be updated and the object related to the object, and to partially replace only the object within the influence range. Therefore, it is not necessary to download all objects from the input unit, it is only necessary to download an object necessary for updating, a configuration management profile corresponding to a new software function, and an IDL file. Download time or object reconstruction time, etc. It is possible to reduce overhead.

  Further, the object configuration data management unit in the middleware that manages the IOR allows the object configuration data management unit to perform a replacement process from the object name to the corresponding IOR, and the object knows the IOR of the connection destination object. The connection can be established only with the connection destination object name. Furthermore, the existing object does not need to know the name of the new object, and without specifying the name of the new object by specifying the previous connection destination object name in the same way as the previous connection is established. It becomes possible to automatically switch to a new object.

  As a result, it is possible to omit the IOR acquisition process by the naming service generally used in the CORBA standard system, and it is not necessary to use a complicated search process, so the processing load of the object can be reduced. It becomes. Also, as long as the object recognizes the name of the other party, the connection can be established without being aware of the location of the other party.

  In addition, since IOR acquisition processing by the object itself can be reduced, the independence of development is improved as a result of interface reduction, and it becomes possible to develop each developer separately for each object or between different companies, improving development efficiency can do.

Embodiment 4 FIG.
In the fourth embodiment, when the connection order is preset in the configuration management profile 131, the connection of objects is established in consideration of the connection order relationship of the downloaded objects. The configuration of the fourth embodiment is the same as the configuration of FIG. 1 in the first embodiment. This will be described below with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an object configuration in the fourth embodiment of the present invention. The package 130 of FIG. 16 includes two objects, an object a and an object b, as in FIG. 2 in the first embodiment. The difference between FIG. 2 and FIG. 16 is that the connection order is reversed.

  FIG. 17 is a diagram showing a data table structure of a newly downloaded configuration management profile according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. The data structure composed of five types of data and the contents thereof are the same as those in FIG. 3 in the first embodiment. However, the connection order in FIG. 17 is defined in reverse to the connection order in FIG.

  FIG. 18 is a diagram showing a data table structure in the repository 122 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. The data structure composed of the seven types of data in FIG. 18 is the same as that in FIG. 4 in the first embodiment. However, the connection order and connection ID in FIG. 18 are opposite to the connection order and connection ID in FIG.

  Furthermore, FIG. 19 is an operation sequence diagram at the time of initial startup in the fourth embodiment of the present invention. The operation will be described according to the steps shown in FIG.

  The processing from step S400 to step S404 in FIG. 19 is the same as the processing from step S100 to step S104 in FIG. 5 of the first embodiment, so that the description thereof will be omitted, and step S405 and subsequent steps will be described in detail.

  Upon receiving the notification, the connection management unit 112 reads the configuration information from the repository 122 and searches for the IOR of the target object (S405). The connection management unit 112 controls the object using the configuration information and the IOR.

  At this time, since the connection order as shown in FIG. 18 is defined as the data table structure in the repository 122, the connection management unit 112 controls connection according to this order. That is, in order to establish a connection between objects, the connection management unit 112 makes a connection request for establishing a connection in the order of object b and object a to each connection source object to be managed (S406).

  Next, each connection source object in the package 130 that has received the connection request issues a connection instruction to the connection destination object. In the example of FIG. 19, the object name of the other party is specified by the bind interface (S407). However, the interface is an example, and this name is not necessarily required.

  The object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 that manages communication between objects retrieves the IOR of the corresponding object from the repository 122 based on the object name in the bind interface (S408), and sends the destination information from the object name to the IOR. The request is transmitted (S409).

  Here, even if the connection instruction from the connection source object “a” arrives at the middleware 120 first, the object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 applies to the connection destination object according to the order defined in the repository 122. Process the request. Therefore, the object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 can execute connection processing according to the connection order without depending on the order of connection instructions from the objects.

  Next, each connection destination object that has received the request for the connection instruction performs a connection process (S410), and returns a response to the connection source object after the process is completed (S411). This response is made via the object configuration data management unit 121 in the same manner as the connection request for establishing the connection described above. In response, the object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 processes the request in accordance with the connection order defined in the repository 122 as in step S408, so that the order is not reversed.

  Next, the object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 notifies the connection management unit 112 that a connection between the objects has been established (S412). By this connection establishment notification, the connection management unit 112 attaches an ID to the connection and registers it in the repository 122 (S413), and performs subsequent management. This ID corresponds to the connection ID in FIG.

  With the IOR registration in step S403 and the connection ID registration in step S413, all table information in the repository 122 shown in FIG. 18 is stored. After registering the connection ID, a connection between the objects is established and communication is possible (S414).

  According to the fourth embodiment, since the configuration management unit and the connection management unit manage the objects to be updated in an integrated manner, it is possible to cope with the case where the connection of the objects has an order relationship. A connection can be established no matter what order is downloaded.

  Furthermore, this connection order can be defined for each type of connection. For example, the connection order can be set for each type of connection such as an external object, an object inside a package, or a shared object. As a result, it is possible to realize a software function updating apparatus that can be applied to various configurations of objects and that uses a function updating method with a wide application range.

Embodiment 5 FIG.
In the fourth embodiment, when the connection order is described in the configuration management profile 131, the connection establishment is performed according to the connection order. On the other hand, the fifth embodiment does not follow all the information of the configuration management profile 131, but establishes connection of an object based on a schedule from the schedule management unit 113 based on a part of information such as a connection order. is there. The configuration of the fifth embodiment is the same as the configuration of FIG. 1 in the first embodiment.

  FIG. 20 is an operation sequence diagram at the time of initial startup according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention. The operation will be described according to the steps shown in FIG.

  The processing from step S500 to step S503 in FIG. 20 is the same as the processing from step S400 to step S403 in FIG. 19 of the fourth embodiment, and thus description thereof will be omitted, and step S504 and subsequent steps will be described in detail.

  The schedule management unit 113 checks whether or not there is a connection instruction such as a connection timing from the input unit 150 (S504). When there is a connection instruction, the schedule management unit 113 registers the connection order based on the instruction in the repository 122 and instructs the configuration management unit 111 to start connection (S505). However, if it is necessary to specify a connection establishment start point (time), the configuration management unit 111 is not instructed until an instruction from the input unit 150 is received.

  The processing from step S506 to S516 in FIG. 20 is the same as the processing from step S404 to S414 in FIG. In this way, a connection based on an instruction from the schedule management unit 113 can be established.

  According to the fifth embodiment, the schedule management unit can manage instructions such as the object establishment timing or connection order based on an instruction from the input unit, and can instruct the configuration management unit. As a result, a software function updating apparatus based on a function updating method that can establish a connection at any timing or in any connection order and freely construct an object can be realized regardless of the configuration management profile.

Embodiment 6 FIG.
In the sixth embodiment, a software function updating apparatus having a recovery function when a connection failure occurs during operation after updating an object will be described. The configuration of the sixth embodiment is the same as the configuration of FIG. 1 in the first embodiment.

  In the sixth embodiment, it is assumed that a failure occurs in an object in a new package or a connection between objects after updating to a newly downloaded new package 130 and changing and operating the connection relationship of objects. . In this case, the connection of the recoverable object can be established based on a past configuration with a track record of operation, and the operation will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 21 is a diagram showing an object configuration in the package 130 according to Embodiment 6 of the present invention. FIG. 21 shows that an object to be operated normally is updated because a failure occurs between objects b ′ and c ′ after the objects to be operated are updated from a, b, and c to a, b ′, and c ′. The case where it recovers to a, b, and c is shown. In the following description, a package including objects b and c is referred to as package 1, a package including objects b 'and c' is referred to as package 2, and a package including object a is referred to as package 3.

  FIG. 22 is a diagram showing a data table structure of objects in operation in the repository 122 according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention. The data structure composed of the seven types of data in FIG. 22 is the same as that in FIG. 4 in the first embodiment. In FIG. 22, information from package 1 to package 3 is set.

  Further, FIG. 23 is an operation sequence diagram at the time of partial update in the sixth embodiment of the present invention. The operation will be described according to the steps shown in FIG.

  After a connection between the package 2 and the package 3 is established, when a failure occurs in an object or connection that configures the package 2, the configuration management unit 111 searches the repository 122 to search for objects in past packages with a track record of operation. It is confirmed that the configuration information is registered (S600). Note that the configuration management unit 111 can also determine past configuration information with an operation record by managing the update history when the update process is performed based on the analysis result of the difference analysis unit 114.

  As shown in FIG. 22, it is assumed that the information of the package 1 before the update is registered in the repository 122 together with the information of the packages 2 and 3 after the update. In this case, it is conceivable that the package 2 is restored to the original package 1 when a failure occurs in the package 2 during operation.

  The configuration management unit 111 requests the connection management unit 112 to switch the package 1 (S601). The connection management unit 112 searches for an IOR of an object within the influence range of the object to be updated (S602), and notifies a disconnection request for temporarily disconnecting the connection to the currently operating object (S603).

  The connection management unit 112 deletes the connection ID corresponding to the disconnection request (S604), and makes a reconnection request for establishing a connection to the managed object in order to establish a connection between the objects (S606). In this case, since the object a is an existing object, the connection management unit 112 issues a reconnection request to the connection-source external object a.

  On the other hand, the object that has received the connection disconnection request disconnects the connection and stops the communication process (S605).

  Next, the external object a that has received the connection request issues a connection instruction to the connection destination object b. In the example of FIG. 23, the object name of the other party is specified by the bind interface (S607), but the interface is an example, and this name is not necessarily required.

  The object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 that manages communication between objects retrieves the IOR of the corresponding object from the repository 122 based on the object name in the bind interface (S608), and sends destination information from the object name to the IOR. Is sent and the request is transmitted (S609).

  Here, the object a uses the same object (object name b) as the previous connection as an argument. Since the object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 can identify that the object name has been changed from the object b ′ to the object b, the object configuration data management unit 121 changes the IOR of the object b by searching the IOR corresponding to the object b. Is going.

  That is, in this process, the function of the object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 does not require the existing object (in this case, the external object a) to know the name of the new object (in this case, the object b). It becomes possible to automatically switch to a new object without being aware of the new object by the same means as when the connection was previously established.

  Next, the connection destination object b that has received the connection instruction request performs connection processing (S610), and returns a response to the connection source external object a after completion of the processing (S611). This response is made via the object configuration data management unit 121 in the same manner as the connection request for establishing the connection described above.

  Next, the object configuration data management unit 121 in the middleware 120 notifies the connection management unit 112 that the connection between the objects a and b has been established (S612). By this connection establishment notification, the connection management unit 112 attaches an ID to the connection and registers it in the repository 122 (S613), and performs subsequent management. This ID corresponds to the connection ID in FIG.

  After registering the connection ID, all external and internal connections between the objects are established and communication is possible (S614). Thereby, switching (recovery) from the package 2 to the package 1 is completed.

  According to the sixth embodiment, the configuration management unit manages the configuration of the objects for each of the plurality of packages, so that even when a defect is found in the software after the object configuration is updated, the connection management unit is instructed by the configuration management unit. You can switch packages back to their original configuration. As a result, it is possible to realize functional recovery of software when a failure occurs.

  In the above description, the switching process with three packages is described, but the present invention is not limited to this. Depending on the system resources, four or more packages may be managed, and it is possible to freely return to a past configuration with a track record of operation, and to further safely update the function of software.

  In addition, by managing not only past results but also separate functions, once downloaded, you can freely switch the function of the software function update device at any time and use it. It is possible to reduce overhead for re-downloading.

Embodiment 7 FIG.
In the seventh embodiment, an operation for reconstructing a management target package by changing the object configuration of the configuration management profile 131 will be described. The configuration of the seventh embodiment is the same as the configuration of FIG. 1 in the first embodiment.

  The object addition operation can be realized by notifying the configuration management unit 111 of the object management unit 110 of the IOR of the own object after the initialization of the added new object is completed. The subsequent operation is the same as that of the first embodiment, which is the operation at the time of initial startup.

  In addition, the object deletion operation deletes the connection between the object to be deleted and the influence range specified by the difference analysis unit 114 of the object management unit 110, and based on the configuration information registered in the repository 122, the connection between the objects is deleted. This can be achieved by establishing a new connection. This is the same as in the second or third embodiment, which is a difference replacement operation in which a connection is once deleted and reconstructed.

  According to the seventh embodiment, since the object configuration can be freely defined by the configuration management profile, it is possible to construct an object connection relationship not only by a fixed configuration but also by an arbitrary configuration. Furthermore, since arbitrary configuration changes are possible, the addition and deletion of objects can be performed at a desired timing, the degree of freedom in changing the configuration of the software function update device is increased, and the function can be improved.

It is a function block diagram for implement | achieving the function update of the radio | wireless apparatus in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is the figure which showed the object structure in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the data table structure of the newly downloaded configuration management profile in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the data table structure in the repository in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is an operation | movement sequence diagram at the time of the initial starting in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is the figure which showed the object structure in Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the data table structure of the newly downloaded configuration management profile in Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the data table structure of the object in operation in the repository in Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the data table structure of the new object in the repository in Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is an operation | movement sequence diagram at the time of the partial update in Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is the figure which showed the object structure in Embodiment 3 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the data table structure of the configuration management profile newly downloaded in Embodiment 3 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the data table structure of the object in operation in the repository in Embodiment 3 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the data table structure of the new object in the repository in Embodiment 3 of this invention. It is an operation | movement sequence diagram at the time of the partial update in Embodiment 3 of this invention. It is the figure which showed the object structure in Embodiment 4 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the data table structure of the newly downloaded configuration management profile in Embodiment 4 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the data table structure in the repository in Embodiment 4 of this invention. It is an operation | movement sequence diagram at the time of the initial starting in Embodiment 4 of this invention. It is an operation | movement sequence diagram at the time of the initial starting in Embodiment 5 of this invention. It is the figure which showed the object structure in Embodiment 6 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the data table structure of the object in operation in the repository in Embodiment 6 of this invention. It is an operation | movement sequence diagram at the time of the partial update in Embodiment 6 of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  111 configuration management unit, 112 connection management unit, 113 schedule management unit, 114 difference analysis unit, 121 object configuration data management unit, 122 repository group (database), 130 package, 131 configuration management profile, 132 managed object group (object group) ) 133 interface definition information.

Claims (6)

Manage the software functions as a collection of objects, Rutotomoni interchanged object to be updated included in the set of the object from the old object to the new object, the switching of the interconnections between the objects associated with the object to be the updated a software function updating device thus to realize various software functions by performing,
A database that stores configuration information having data of interconnection relationships between objects;
A storage unit that stores package data including a configuration management profile having data of an interconnection relationship between objects of software functions to be managed, and an object group that is a set of managed objects;
For a new software function that requires replacement of objects and switching of interconnections between objects, a configuration management profile having data on interconnection relations between objects, and a new object group necessary for the new software function An input unit that sets new package data including, downloads and stores the package data in the storage unit,
The configuration management profile included in the new package data is read from the storage unit at the downloaded timing, is registered as configuration information in the database, and is included in the object group in the new package data. Along with the completion of initialization after the new object is activated at the download timing, the notification of the IOR that is the reference destination information of the own object is received from the new object, and the configuration information already registered in the database A configuration management unit for notifying a first connection request as a request for establishing a connection between objects after newly registering the IOR information in association with the new object as a part;
In response to the first connection request, after disconnecting the interconnection between the objects related to the old object to be replaced with the new object, the connection is made based on the configuration information including the IOR information registered in the database. A connection management unit that detects connection source objects in a relationship and outputs a second connection request for establishing a connection with a connection destination object for each connection source object to be managed;
When a connection instruction for a connection destination object is received from the connection source object in response to the second connection request, a connection destination object having a connection relationship is detected based on the configuration information including the IOR information, and the new package A connection between the connection source object and the connection destination object is established so as to establish an interconnection between the objects specified in the data, and to complete the replacement of the object according to the new package data and the switching of the interconnection between the objects A software function update device comprising: an object configuration data management unit that controls connection between the two. In the software function update device according to claim 1,
For the objects to be interconnected , the input unit executes a first connection step in which one object is a connection source object and the other object is a connection destination object, and then the other object is a connection source object and one object is when performed according to the interconnection connection order between two objects by performing a second connecting step of the connection destination object, further sets a new package data including data relating to the connection order to the configuration management in a profile , Stored in the storage unit,
The connection management unit notifies the second connection request to detect a connection source object in said first connecting step in accordance with data relating to the connection sequence in the configuration information,
The object configuration data management unit, in accordance with data relating to the connection sequence in the configuration information, the first connection step, in the order of the second connecting step, and performs connection control between objects Software function update device. In the software function update device according to claim 1,
When connecting objects related to configuration information registered in the database, the connection order included in the registered configuration information is updated by receiving input data related to the connection order or connection timing of objects via the input unit. And a schedule management unit that outputs a connection start instruction to the configuration management unit,
The configuration management unit notifies the connection management unit of the first connection request based on the connection start instruction,
The connection management unit notifies the second connection request in an order according to the data related to the connection order in the configuration information updated by the input data;
The object configuration data management unit performs connection control between objects in an order according to data related to the connection order in the configuration information. In the software function update device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
A difference analysis unit that identifies an update object based on a comparison of two pieces of configuration information in the database;
The configuration management unit specifies an object to be updated instead of notifying the connection management unit of the first connection request when switching the currently used software function to the operation of the new software function. Is output to the difference analysis unit,
The difference analysis unit receives the analysis request, the configuration information currently in operation in the database, based on a comparison of the configuration information corresponding to the new software functions, the the update target object and Specify a connection relationship related to the object to be updated, and output an update request based on the specified object and the connection relationship related to the specified object to the connection management unit,
The connection management unit outputs the second connection request in response to the update request. In the software function update device according to claim 4,
The input unit sets new package data further including, as interface definition information, an IDL file in which interface information provided by each object is described, and stores the new package data in the storage unit,
The configuration management unit reads the interface definition information together with the configuration management profile from the storage unit, registers the interface definition information as a part of the configuration information in the database,
The difference analysis unit includes the object to be updated and the update target in consideration of the comparison result of the interface definition information included in the configuration information currently in operation and the configuration information corresponding to the new software function. A software function update device characterized by specifying a connection relation related to an object to be a target. In the software function update device according to claim 4 or 5,
The configuration management unit stores the update history of the software function in the database based on the analysis result of the difference analysis unit, and receives abnormality information from the object due to a failure in the object in operation. If it is determined that the configuration information before the update exists for the configuration information corresponding to the currently operating software function based on the update history stored in the connection management unit, the configuration information before the update is stored in the connection management unit. Outputs a switch request to switch to the based object,
The connection management unit outputs the second connection request in order to establish a connection between objects corresponding to the configuration information before the update based on the switching request.

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